G'day guys.

I thought i'd ask up on here as seatbelt's are obviously what stopping me from face-fiving someones boot if i got into a rear accident or something of the sort.

My drivers seatbelt isn't retracting most of the time. Before i just sprayed some WD40 on it i was wondering is there do's and don'ts when lubricating the belt? i don't wanna do something that will make it slip or need me to replace it if you get what i mean.


Cheers :D

My opinion only, but any lubricant like WD40 will only make things worse - it will attract dirt which will make things worse and cause it to stain your shirt. I've found that the belt becomes stiff due to dirt/perspiration etc ...the way to fix is to remove the belt assembly from the car and extend the belt fully, stop it retracting with a clothes peg, and then hand wash the belt fabric with any brand soap/detergent then rinse and finally rinse with "softly" or similar product that makes nappies soft. Hang the assembly to dry in the sun and then remove the clothes peg and re instal. Be careful not to get any water in the mechanism. It usually is the stiffness of the belt that prevents it retracting.
It is possible to remove the belt from the retractor assembly and increase the spring tension...do a google search for that.
If cash is unlimited you can always buy a new one.....ones from wrecks may exhibit the same problems as your does plus if the vehicle has been in a prang it is illegal to reuse the belt.

The only way to fix is to replace, you should never use any chemical on any seat belt

They are only about $130 brand new and given they can save your life, well worth the investment lol

It is not legal to sell a secondhand seatbelt for use in a road registered car thus why most will nto sell them

Like Hako said,rub the belt down a couple of times with a wet face washer with warm/hot soapy water is the best chance you have without replacing the mechanism

The only way to fix is to replace, you should never use any chemical on any seat belt

They are only about $130 brand new and given they can save your life, well worth the investment lol

It is not legal to sell a secondhand seatbelt for use in a road registered car thus why most will nto sell them

Mal is right your better off buying a new belt, but if money is tight its only illegal to sell a 2nd hand seat belt from a car thats had a major crash if u can find a wreck with minor damage and inspect the belt carefully then its safer than one that doesn't retract and fit properly. most crash repairers wont replace seat belts after an accident unless the tab is showing.

Ahh i thought so! haha. little win for me ;) yeah i didn't wanna lub it up and then the snap and hold mechanism turns into a slight grip and sliiiide lol


Thanks guys, what ill do is warm soapy water (not heaps just a bit) on the belt see if that helps free it up till i can replace it with another one.

Washing the belt will get it clean but will do nothing to the retractor mechanism. Take the belt right out of the car, and fully extend it, then lube the roller in the bottom section, but only the part that actually moves on its retaining bracket. Then exercise the belt by rolling it in and extending it a few times. Keep the bottom bit in its mounted position otherwise the lockup part will activate. It will loosen right up. No need to buy a new one unless the belt is frayed or the tab is showing. Treat it gently as there is an explosive device in there, no hitting it with a hammer or dropping it, ok? lol

Washing the belt will get it clean but will do nothing to the retractor mechanism. Take the belt right out of the car, and fully extend it, then lube the roller in the bottom section, but only the part that actually moves on its retaining bracket. Then exercise the belt by rolling it in and extending it a few times. Keep the bottom bit in its mounted position otherwise the lockup part will activate. It will loosen right up. No need to buy a new one unless the belt is frayed or the tab is showing. Treat it gently as there is an explosive device in there, no hitting it with a hammer or dropping it, ok? lol

Once again you amaze me. DO NOT bloody lube your belt, this is the No1 safety thing in your car, if this fails, your dead.

Just replace the thing and dont dice with death.

Once again you amaze me. DO NOT bloody lube your belt, this is the No1 safety thing in your car, if this fails, your dead.

Just replace the thing and dont dice with death.

Lube the belt = NO, lube the retractor mechanism = YES.
Ever pulled one of these apart? Obviously not.

And put your brain in gear before you start putting up abusive posts.

Lube the belt = NO, lube the retractor mechanism = YES.
Ever pulled one of these apart? Obviously not.

And put your brain in gear before you start putting up abusive posts.

Sorry mate, my post was not abusive. I was just saying that yeah u can go and lube the retractor up but your dicing with death when you have an accident...
and yes i have pulled one of these apart... so dont start having a go at me telling me to "put my brain in to gear" when even Mitsubishi say that you cannot repair these items, they MUST be replaced.

"Once again you amaze me."

That's not abusive?

I'm simply giving the OP an alternative. I have stripped a retractor down to its basic parts, cleaned and lubed then reassembled to perfect working order. If the OP doesn't feel confident in doing so, he can replace the whole thing. It's up to him to choose.

Madmax, Im removing myself from this "thread" as you seem to obviously have something wrong with someone elses opinion, as you do with most other threads that i see you post in.

Enjoy giving people incorrect advice.

Whippy Out.

Madmax, Im removing myself from this "thread" as you seem to obviously have something wrong with someone elses opinion, as you do with most other threads that i see you post in.

Enjoy giving people incorrect advice.

Whippy Out.

So telling someone that they amaze you is abusve, well **** me, what next, I love you max, is this abusive as well, as I realyl do, I just hate the pure and sometimes dangerous verbal diarrhea you seem to be so good at spouting on these forums, things like have you ever takend a belt apart before, no most of us have not as we read the instructions that state that the retractable seat belt is not a servicable item, now you can read right?

You want to spout your so called tech info mate, please get it right, dont tell them to pull apart seat belts, to use angle grinders to remove paint etc etc, and to everyone else in these forums or who may come across this thread one day, please please for the sake of yourself and your family who may be sitting in the seat that you have just wrecked your seatbelt in, if there is an issue, dont be a tight ass and just buy a new one. If you can not afford $150 take a bloody bus. Cars cost money to run, if you dont have money, you should not drive it. Not all that hard really.

Presti, call me please and I will see what I can do for you and let you know if what your issue is will be dangerous or just inconvenient

edit: OlFart has just reminded me of somethign else I was going to say, if you are unfortunate enough to lube your seat belt, please crash into the bush or something so none of my SES Road Rescue mates have to have the trauma of scraping your brains off your windscreen

Just proof Max that I did report this for you


Madmagna (http://www.aussiemagna.com/forums/member.php?u=18) has reported a post.

Reason:
Post: Seatbelt Not Retracting (http://www.aussiemagna.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1362843#post1362843)
Forum: Third Generation Magna TE - TW
Assigned Moderators: EGO, Ol' Fart, D-VAN, Red Valdez, TimmyC

Posted by: Madmagna (http://www.aussiemagna.com/forums/member.php?u=18)
Original Content:

Whippy seems hell bent on the "you are wrong, I'm right" type of discussion.

There are alternative ways of solving the OP's seat belt problem, replacing or cleaning it up. It's that simple.

Cmon ladies .... play nice.

The thing is here that you have to be careful what (and how) you say things.

Is it abusive ........................... borderline ...............happy to edit the posts though.

Can it be done.................. yes.

Should it be done ............................ consider this.

He pulls it apart, lubes it and reassembles it.
Later he has a crash and it fails and hes seriously injured.
The insurance company rights off his claim citing the belt tampering.
He then has to sue whoever gave him that advice to recoup his costs and losses.
That would be ........................ you Maxy.

This is why we have to be careful what advice we give, especially to someone who may not be capable of correctly carrying out that advice. (no offence intended there Presti mate, just an example ..mmkay)

This is why some people react strongly to these things ........ its life and death stuff mate.

Yep. All my dangerous and incorrect posts have been deleted. I wouldn't want to be responsible for a botched job.

The OP should replace the belt, especially now it has been soaked in WD40.

Could some other people now go back and delete some of their posts too? Maybe a mod can tidy things up, please?

shit i went to work and come back to see something had blown up.

What im gonna do is when i get paid, im going to speak to Mal and source a new belt. I didn't think it would blow out like this.


Mods if you read this feel free to close. Thanks guys!

No worries Presti mate. :D